Hearts Like Drums
by DarkElements10
Summary: Life certainly is a rush when you're planning your own wedding, celebrating your soon to be sister-in-law's first wedding anniversary, and dealing with an engagement that might derail itself before it reaches it's final destination.
1. Chapter 1

**Hearts Like Drums**

**By: Rhuben**

**Summary-Life certainly is a rush when you're planning your own wedding, celebrating your soon to be sister-in-law's first wedding anniversary, and dealing with an engagement that might derail itself before it reaches it's final destination.  
**

* * *

Kendall Knight let out a sigh as he removed his hockey helmet from his matted hair. The cool air of the arena swept past him as he slowly finished his laps around the rink. His feet ached, his muscles throbbed with pain, and his fingers felt as if they permanently be clamped around his hockey stick, but he loved every minute on the ice and wouldn't change it for a thing.

Unless, maybe if Big Time Rush wanted to do another tour.

He was only 22 years old and had a long music career ahead of him if he chose to continue down that path. Women in Hollywood were considered to "expire" in their forties while men could continue on until their fifties or sixties. In "Hollywood Years" he was still a baby and had plenty of stock left in Tinsel Town.

But in "Hockey Years" he was the right age in a sport that accepted everyone as long as they worked hard and enjoyed the game. Sure, he was younger than other adults he played with giving him a bit of an advantage with his speed, but with hockey it was about being a team. There was no way he'd be able to score a goal without his teammates on offense paving a clear path for him, or his teammates on defense and in goal having his back in case he messed something up.

He didn't have to be a part of that world anymore to experience it, not when his fiancé was still working hard with her music. Kendall shoved his gloved hand into his armpit and pulled out his hand to lift a finger in the air, telling Riley Jackson-McGuire that he had one more lap and then he'd be done. He grinned when he heard her huff of annoyance echoing around the high ceiling rink as she crossed her bundled arms tightly over her chest.

He closed his eyes against the cool breeze as he zipped around the ice, sniffing as snot threatened to slide out of his nose. He swallowed thickly before letting out a breath of air, watching as it came out in a billowing puff, his cheeks and nose had a little bit left of feeling of them and his toes were ice blocks.

"Come on, Killer, bring it in," his coach called over to him. "You need to rest up."

"I'm coming, I'm coming," Kendall replied, shifting his weigh on his skates to change his direction, coming to a stop at the side of the rink, waving Riley down towards him.

"Are you done with your reindeer games, Rudolph?" were the first words out of her mouth as she greeted him at the door to the player's bench. Those words were accompanied with her usual wicked grin and flash of mischief in her blue eyes. Her lips quivered, her teeth chattered as she pulled her sweatshirt tighter around her.

"Yeah, I just have to go change," Kendall replied, running his hand over his sweaty head. "How'd I do today?"

"Rushtastic, love," Riley replied with a half smile, despite her mocking tone. She only ever called him "love" whenever she was over-exaggerating not only her accent but her teasing comments.

Kendall chuckled before angling his head back slightly and Riley leaned forward to press a kiss to his lips. He smiled as her warm lips slid across his, send his heart racing like it usually did. He was lucky to have found her and to have her in his life.

The Australian beauty certainly has changed his life not only in the music world (as her band had helped him learn the ropes of the music business) but in general. He had never met one single person who he had so much in common with before meeting her…and she didn't want to have anything to do with him at first. All he wanted was to be her friend and he eventually found himself falling in love with her. He was excited to be marrying her in three months time.

"Be serious, Riles. You sure I was doing well today?" Kendall asked as soon as she pulled away from him, resting her arms on his shoulders, sliding her fingers through the hair on the back of his neck.

Riley made a face. "Of course, Hockey-Head and you know I'd tell you if you royally sucked." Kendall briefly glanced towards the ceiling. "The _real _question here is how you always manage to get me to come out here."

"I have my ways, Ruby," Kendall replied with a wink before shifting his weight to the front of his skates, allowing himself to start to glide backwards. Riley rolled her eyes, shaking her head. He briefly caught the name "Boofhead" before he spun around, skating over to his coaches.

"Great work today, son." Kendall was clapped hard on the shoulder once, twice, three times, as he easily transferred himself from the ice onto the walkway of the arean, hobbling on the blades. "You really pushed yourself out there."

"Thanks, Coach," Kendall replied, lifting his hockey helmet into the air before making his way back into the locker room. He let out a sigh as he came face to face with the warm steam coming from the showers his teammates were taking. He collapsed onto the wooden bench in front of his locker with a loud groan.

"See what being engaged does?" the goalie Craig asked as he rolled sticky deodorant into his armpits. "You push yourself harder than you have to. You look like death, man."

"Broken bone, fracture, sprain, or death bed I've got a hot doctor-in-training living with me," Kendall replied with a grin. He moved his hockey stick to block his face when Craig reached for his towel, throwing it at his head. "Don't be jealous."

"So how is the bride to be?" Craig asked.

"Cold," Kendall joked, throwing his hockey gloves back over his shoulder into his locker. Craig laughed. "You know how she is. We're going back to California in a couple of days to finish planning for the wedding so it's not too bad." He set his hockey stick inside. "She hates the cold, but I know it's just because she misses her family. This is the longest she's been away from them, especially her twin, and she's anxious to get back."

He changed out of his hockey uniform and pads as quickly as his tired body would let him. He was missing his family, too. He was the only one who had moved back to Minnesota after Big Time Rush had ended to continue his hockey career. It was different being on his own, but his mom and Katie had a wonderful house in California and Katie's career as not only a commercial actor but a talent manager was picking up. Not only that, but James stayed in Los Angeles to pursue a solo career with his music, Carlos was with his wife of two years, Stephanie King, as she continued her filmmaking career, and Logan decided to attend UCLA for their medical program.

It was hard enough to be by himself but he knew it was harder to ask Riley to move in with him in Minnesota. Not only did she hate the cold, but she had never been away from her family for so long. She had always been around them, serving as their mother figure as they grew up as well as her job as one of the guitarist in her family band.

They toured often as their popularity and fan base grew in America. Their first few albums didn't do as well as they hoped (in comparison to Big Time Rush who's first album hit as number 3 in the Billboard 200 list), but with their newer sound permission to make their own choices with the band, they were really hitting their stride. He couldn't be more proud of them, but also knew recording vocal and guitar tracks over the computer wasn't the same to her as being in the studio.

When it all came down to it, they loved each other enough to support each other in any endeavor even if it meant having to put something in their life on hold. A long distance relationship wasn't in the cards for them; not because they didn't think they could be faithful to each other, but because Kendall didn't want to put that fear in her head, she had gone through too much of that in her life.

"What about you?" Craig asked. "You excited to be getting back to your life in Hollywood?"

"I'm just happy to make her happy," Kendall replied with a shrug, pulling a sweatshirt down over his t-shirt. "She's the happiest I've ever seen her around family, so…and my family is out there, too and I'm starting to get tired of insisting I can actually cook."

Craig chuckled before offering Kendall his hand. Kendall smiled, slapping his palm into his. "Congratulations, Killer," he said with a nod of his head. "Really. You and Riley are great together."

"I know," Kendall replied with a smug smile. He packed his gear into his hockey bag and flung the strap over his shoulder. "I'll see you later." Craig gave a head nod in farewell and Kendall made his way out of the locker room to meet Riley at the lobby. "You getting cold?"

"Nothing some hot chocolate won't cure," Riley replied, looping her arm around his waist, leaning into his side.

"With tiny marshmallows?" Kendall asked, feeling his eyes widen in excitement. Riley twisted her mouth to the side, fighting her trademark eye roll. "What?"

"You're such a…" Riley trailed off, waving her hand in the air.

"Boofhead?" Kendall prompted. Riley snapped her fingers before putting her index finger to her nose. "You want to know what you are?" Riley hiked an eyebrow in response. "Mine." He tipped her chin upwards with his finger, kissing her. And he couldn't wait to do it for the rest of his life.


	2. Chapter 2

Kendall let out a sigh of content as he stepped over the threshold of his apartment in sunny California, a blast of cool air hitting him in the face as the familiar hum of the air conditioner reached his ears. He dropped his bags down by the door and smiled to himself when he heard the small sigh of annoyance from Riley as she stepped past him, making her way into their room, adjusting the trap to the bag on her shoulder.

Unlike Kendall, she had a small amount of bags. While he had his hockey bag, two suitcases, backpack, and laptop case filled with everything he needed, she only had a suitcase and her backpack. He was still somewhat annoyed at himself that despite years of touring he still hadn't mastered the art of living out of a suitcase.

He could probably chalk it up to living with James for so long; being drilled over and over again of which shirts and clothes could breathe in a suitcase, and which had to be put in a dress bag was still implanted in his brain. She made it look easy; not that he could really blame her having toured for longer than he ever hand and moving around a lot. It was something that stuck with her as the minute she knew she would be travelling somewhere she would pack at least a week in advance.

"Do you _have _to leave all your crap all over the floor?" she asked. He could picture her rolling her eyes and his smile widened just a little bit as he followed behind her, his footsteps muffled on the plush white carpet.

"You've never complained about it before, Ruby," Kendall replied in a sing-song voice. He crossed his arms over his chest, slowing his steps as he made his way over to "And have I told you how many times I've tripped over the skateboard you leaving around everywhere?"

"With all the goons that could trip you in any game of hockey, and all those years dancing, you'd think you'd have better balance," Riley replied, deadpan.

"Well, it's either that or you're trying to make sure I don't get away in a hurry," Kendall replied, feeling his right eyebrow twitch upwards. He put a lift to the end of his tone so she could understand that he was kidding.

There was a moment of silence before she let out a short laugh. "You've figured out my secret," she muttered. Kendall leaned against the door jam, scratching the side of his jaw as he silently regarded her. She held her back straight, head level as if silently daring him to thrown an insult her way. Not that he blamed her. He knew what it felt like to anticipate negative comments to your every sentence and to brace yourself for whatever could be thrown your way.

Letting out a heavy sigh through his nose, Kendall bowed his head, feeling his heart drop just slightly. He pushed himself off of the wooden frame and made his way over towards her, sliding his arms around her waist, resting his chin on her shoulder. He felt her muscles stiffen for a brief moment before she relaxed against his chest, her small hands grasping at his arms.

"Don't you think I would've left by now if that was what I wanted?" he asked into her ear.

"Just letting you know that you have plenty of time left to change your mind," Riley replied. Kendall pursed his lips before gently tugging at her side. Riley turned to face him.

"Is that what you want?" he asked.

Riley's lips twitched. "No," she replied with a shake of her head. "But, I'm not Rhubes."

"That's mainly the reason why I'm engaged to you in case you didn't know," Kendall commented with a slight laugh. Riley's eyebrows shifted upwards and she sucked her lips into her mouth. "That…was supposed to make you laugh." She blinked. "Or at the very least, smile."

"Boofhead." Riley rolled her eyes before lifting a hand to shove her shoulder. "I meant that I'm not a huge believer of the happily ever after thing, at least not in the fairy tale kind of way." Kendall gave her a confused look. "I mean…" she trailed off for a moment, lifting a hand to twirl a lock of her hair around her finger.

Gone were her trademark pigtails, instead she now opted for braiding her hair diagonally across the back of her head, the rest of her hair lying on her shoulder in what was called, and he didn't understand why it was named this way, a mermaid braid.

The new hairstyle suited her and while it took a bit for Kendall to get used to the change, he understood that the change from the hairstyle she had for years signified her growth. Her pigtails, as he was explained, were from her mom, and it was her way of holding on to her memory as a way for her to keep her happiness.

The more she grew and came to terms with her past—the happier she got—the less often she wore her pig tails. Just the same, the more often she used her natural Australian accent before sticking with it all together. It warmed Kendall's heart to watch her become a more open, fun loving, and trusting person; essentially being herself.

He couldn't love her more.

"I believe that everybody will find that one person they'll spend the rest of their lives with, but all those books and movies don't show people that it takes a lot of hard work and sacrifice and…_stuff_," Riley replied, counting off on her fingers. "You know how I am with confrontation."

"Either you talk back or you run away from it," Kendall instantly replied. "Sounds familiar." He gave her a curious look as he referenced himself and Riley allowed herself to chuckle. He laughed along with her before a serious look crossed his face. "Or you push people away. Newsflash, Ruby, you can push as hard as you want, but I'm not budging."

"You do realize the minute Chris Pine comes calling for me, you'll be out on the curb faster than you can say 'Rushtastic'," Riley said, her usual smirk, accompanied with the slight wrinkle of her nose, appeared on her face.

"And here I thought I was second in importance to you; right behind your family of course," Kendall said, twisting his mouth to the side.

"Nope, third," she replied, with a challenging smile. "What're you going to do about it, Hockey Head?"

"I guess it's better than nothing," Kendall said with an exaggerated whining tone before he smiled, kissing her. He gently pushed her back until the soft blankets on the mattress formed around their bodies, enveloping them. Kendall pulled back, putting all of his weight on his forearms, looking down at her. "Do you not want to get married?"

"Of course I do," Riley replied, lifting her hands to run her fingers through the hair at the sides of his head, sending shivers down his spine. "We kinda have to now. Julius and Brittany are coming in all the way from OZ and she can't fly much longer in her condition. I don't want them out here for nothing."

"Well, if that's the _only_ reason," Kendall said, rolling his eyes.

"No, I want the presents, too," Riley reassured him and Kendall let out a loud laugh. She sat up to kiss his forehead. "Seriously, Kendall, I do want to marry you. It's just…three months away."

Kendall could hear the slight hint of worry in her voice. He couldn't blame her; it was three months away and they still had a lot to do. Her dad was paying for a lot of it, but he didn't want to have him spend more than they really needed. He wanted the day to be romantic for her, and she wanted the day to be just as special for him as well, but it was coming up fast and they still had a lot to do.

"Three months and then I get to call you my wife," Kendall said.

"Right," Riley replied, blinking once. She let out a sigh and pushed on his shoulders. "So, we should get going." Kendall didn't budge.

"We just got back from the airport, I think your brothers and sister can do without you for another ten minutes," Kendall said with a small huff. Riley's lips slowly curled up at the corners. A flash of mischief sparked in her yes, making the piercing blues look a little bit more electrifying than usual. He let out a sigh through his nose, waiting for the sarcastic comment that was coming.

"Selling yourself short there, don't you think, mate?" she drawled in her Australian accent. Her eyes drifted downwards for a split second before they locked on his green ones. "In more ways than one, I reckon."

"Funny."

"Aren't I though?" Riley asked, over emphasizing the bat of her eyelashes. "I'm a riot." She then pressed her lips together. "Seriously though, we need to get going. Syd will burst if he has to wait another tick for us to head over. And I'm talking about just seeing you."

Kendall chuckled before pushing himself onto his feet. "Ok, but I'll meet you there?" he asked, his eyebrows lifting. "I need to run an errand first." He shrugged his shoulders. "Plus, I figured you'd like the time alone with your family for a little while. Besides, mom and Katie are having a girl's day or whatever-" He waved his hand in the air, lifting his eyes to the ceiling to show his excitement, "—and will drop by your place later."

"And the minute Carlos knows you're back in town, he'll have the rest of them over, too," Riley explained, lacing her fingers together before cupping the back of her head with her hands. The hem of her shirt rose up slightly revealing her flat stomach and the bottom half of her nautical star tattoo.

"James will undoubtedly go on a tirade about why he should always be the first to know whenever I'm back in town," Kendall continued. He gave a peaceful smile before giving a double thumbs up "It'll be like old times."

"Bonzer," Riley replied with a nod of her head. She stretched out her hand and Kendall took her small hand into his, easily pulling her to her feet. "I'll check the mail and then see you over there, yeah?"

"Yeah," Kendall replied. He crossed the room to his closet and pulled the door open. He grasped the collar of his t-shirt and lifted it up over his head. He tugged on a shirt, pulling it off the hangar before slipping it on over his head.

He moved to his dresser and pulled it open, glancing up briefly to check that Riley wasn't in the room before reaching under a stack of his underwear to pull out a small velvet box. He tucked it into the pocket of his jeans and reached for his deodorant, quickly applying a new coat before tossing it back into his drawer, using his hip to close it.

He made his way out of the apartment, remembering to lock the door behind him, before making his way down to the lobby, spotting Riley in the "post office" area, head angled downwards as she read the unfolded paper in her hands. "What's that?" Kendall asked, stepping up beside her. Riley handed him the mail that had his name on it.

"It was for the person who had the box before us," Riley replied with a single-shoulder shrug, folding the paper back up before sliding it into her back pocket. "Internet bill." Kendall glanced down at the envelop, his eyes narrowing just slightly when he saw that it was a plain white envelope.

"Ok," he replied after a brief moment of silence, moving to kiss her on the cheek. "I'll see you at your place in a bit." He reached into his pocket for his car keys and made his way outside into the bright California sunlight.

* * *

"I'll call you as soon as I'm done with work today."

"Mhmm."

"I should be there in time for dinner, but if not I can stop and get something to eat."

"I'll tell Patrick to save you a plate."

"And tell Riles I'll be seeing her and Kendall later."

"You got it."

"And—"

"Hey!" Rhuben Jackson-McGuire, otherwise known as Rhuben Zevon, put a hand over her husband's mouth, setting the dress shirt in her hand, down onto the sink counter before facing Dak. "Would you relax? I've got it covered. Riles knows you have to work today and if Patrick tries to eat your food we'll just sit on him, yeah?"

She slowly removed her hand from his mouth, the light catching the diamonds in her wedding ring for a split second. Dak Zevon gave her a smile before turning to smile at his reflection in the bathroom mirror, working on tying his tie with shaky fingers. "What about-?"

"I'm working on the last few music files today, I'll have them sent over as soon as they're done," Rhuben replied, reaching for the shirt again. She gently shook it out before holding it out towards him. "You really need to take a chill pill, mate."

"I can't help it," Dak said with a sigh, his shoulders slumping as he removed his hands from the tie. "Today's a big day."

"For both of us," she replied. She shook the shirt, lifting her eyebrows as she waited for him to slide his arms through the sleeves. "You're going to launch your record company, and in turn, I'm going to sell a few songs I've produced for you." She lifted the shirt up over his shoulders before he turned to face her. "It'll come good."

"You sure about that?" Dak asked, starting to button up his shirt as she slid his tie around his neck, under the collar of his shirt, tightening it for him.

"You've proven that to me time and time again," Rhuben replied as she took a step back from him, smiling. "Haven't doubted you yet. Not since we've been married, anyway." She blinked slowly. "You're awesome."

Dak smiled before leaning towards, pressing his lips to hers in a sweet kiss. "I love you, too," he replied, pressing his forehead against hers, his nose pressing on the bridge of her glasses. Rhuben closed her eyes, breathing in his scent. "Wish me luck."

"You won't need it," Rhuben replied. "But, good luck."

Dak chuckled before making his way out of the bathroom and towards the apartment door. Rhuben followed him, bidding him farewell as he stepped over the threshold and into the hallway before she closed the door behind him. Letting out a sigh, she scratched the back of her neck, making her way over to the couch. She grabbed her computer from the table and curled up on the cushions.

Ten minutes later, Rhuben looked up from her computer, tilting her head back, the back of the couch cradling the back of her neck as her spilled down the back. She squinted at the front door of her apartment, slapping her thumb against the spacebar instantly cutting the music that played through her headphones. A light knock sounded on the door.

"Come in, Kenny," she called, sitting up straight, her hair flying forward, grazing past her ears before settling on her shoulders. The door to the condo opened and Kendall sauntered in, closing it behind him.

"How'd you know it was me?" Kendall asked, scratching at his hairline as he made his way over to the couch. He jumped over the back and landed on the cushions, jostling her, bouncing slightly before they settled, holding up his weight.

"You're the only one that knocks like that," Rhuben replied, pushing her glasses up her nose with her index finger. Kendall tilted his head to the side, giving her a questioning look. She held back a grin. "You've been spending too much time with my sister."

It was funny to her; she noticed how much Big Time Rush had rubbed off on her and her brothers and sister the more time she spent with them over the year, but she never thought the boys would pick up some of their mannerisms. The head tilt was practically a trade mark of Riley's, the lopsided smile Patrick's.

It was still hard for to realize at times that people looked up to her, wanted to be like her, and wanted to be around her. She bowed her head slightly, using her shoulder to brush her hair from her face. It was an even weirder thought to have as her one year wedding anniversary was coming up. A part of her just still couldn't believe she had found her Prince Charming in Dak Zevon, and that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her. She was the happiest she could ever remember being and wished the same for everyone else…including her sister.

"You're acting like that's a bad thing," Kendall said with a grin, straightening the angle of his head.

"Alright, mate?" Rhuben asked, throwing her ear bud headphones over her shoulders. She made a brief face at him. "Apart from your jacked up hair cut." She clicked her tongue shaking her head back and forth. "Now's the time to go back to beanies. Seriously."

"Ha, ha," Kendall laughed sarcastically, running his fingers through his shorter hair cut.

"How are you doing, Kenny?" she asked, moving forward in her seat, stretching out her arms to give her a hug. "How's hockey?" As she settled back into her seat, she got a good look at him.

She could admit that it made him look older, and more handsome. He had also allowed his facial hair to grow out a bit more with stubble connecting his side burns to the hairs on his chin, finishing the shape with light fuzz on his upper lip.

"Hockey's great, but I'll explain all that later so I don't have to repeat it so many times," Kendall replied, rubbing his hands together. Rhuben gave him a curious look. "I wanted to run something by you, Benny." He paused for a moment. "Before I tell Riley." Rhuben nodded her head, setting her computer aside. "What's that?"

"Uhhh, just working on a wedding anniversary gift for Dak," Rhuben replied, using her hands to brush her hair back behind her ears. Kendall shifted his eyebrows upwards, giving a half smile, prompting her to go on. "You know how I gave Dak my journal stuff about him for our second anniversary last year?"

"Yeah," Kendall replied, nodding his head.

"Well, I didn't actually give him each one," Rhuben explained. "There are two I still have, one I'm going to give him for our first anniversary, and one for our fifth." She gave him a small smile. "I'm deciding on whether or not I want to add like a voice over to this picture slide show, though. I'm picking out music right now."

"That's cool," Kendall said, giving her a warm smile.

"Hey, your wedding is coming up soon," Rhuben said, leaning over to gently slap his knee and Kendall's smile grew wider.

He and Riley had gotten engaged less than a month after she and Dak had gotten married. Dak had proposed to her in between Christmas and New Year's of 2014, getting married around the same time the next year. That January, in 2016, was when Kendall proposed to Riley.

A lot of fans thought it was weird and thought he was stealing their thunder, but he had gone to the two of them ahead of time and asked if it was ok for him to do so. Who was she to stop her sister from being happy? They were getting married in a couple of months in October, and it was coming up fast.

"Is that what you wanted to talk to me about?"

"Kind of," Kendall replied with a nod of his head. "I haven't told you this, but, right before I had proposed to Riles, I had told her about my abuse and everything." Rhuben slowly nodded her head, her eyes squinting just slightly.

Kendall had told Rhuben the news first when he helped her with a photography project. He didn't want to do it at first, but knew he really couldn't move forward with her if he didn't tell her. Rhuben's project was the perfect time to get a gauge on how Riley would react. Kind of. He knew that the two of them thought differently about things, had different reactions, but he figured it'd be the best way to get an idea of multiple reactions.

She was surprised that he had entrusted her with something so important partially because she never really thought that they were that close. Nevertheless, she was glad he told her. After hearing the news, looking back on his actions in trying to get them help, it had all made sense. It was comforting in a way to know that someone she knew had gone through the same thing and understood her actions and thoughts and feelings without long winded circulatory explanations.

"And?" she prompted.

"There's something else I hadn't told her, or anyone else," Kendall slowly replied. Rhuben lifted her arm and placed it on the back of the couch, propping her head up with her hand. "James, Carlos, and Logan don't even know."

"I don't think you should be telling me first, then," Rhuben replied, shaking her head back and forth. "Especially if it's this big, _especially _when you're going to marry my sister. Your abuse news was one thing but…" She stopped talking when a pained expression briefly crossed his face as he waved his hand in the air. She let out a sigh through her nose. "You're best friends; you should tell her first. You're going to have to be a team on this one; if you can't tell her something like this first…" Kendall gave her a pleading look. "If you're game, mate, I guess I can't stop you from wanting a chin wag."

As the Jacksons had grown over the past couple of years without Robert around, they had shifted back into speaking more predominately with their native Australian accent. Unfortunately for their friends that meant a lot of slang words they didn't understand, but over time they had been doing a better job at understanding what they were saying. Even Ronan was picking up some of their inflections in how they said their words and phrases.

"You know as well as I do that I'm worried I'll end up being like my dad," Kendall explained. Rhuben wanted to protest, to tell him that he was nothing like his dad, but she kept her mouth shut. "I'm really getting worried about it now cause, um…" He cleared his throat, tugging at the collar of his shirt. Rhuben gave him a gentle smile before reaching out a hand to rub his knee in soothing circles. "Um…so, my dad, uh, he cheated on my mom." Rhuben felt her eyes widen. "I don't know…I think the paranoia of getting caught…or he wanted out made him…I don't know. I just don't want to do that to her."

"What makes you think you would?" Rhuben asked him, giving him a confused look. "You're an honest and loyal, bloke, Kenny. You wouldn't do that to her."

"Yeah, because she'd kill me," Kendall replied. Rhuben rolled her eyes.

"You know as well as I do that Riles' bark is worse than her bite, she wouldn't do that," Rhuben said to him. "She'd spit the dummy but she wouldn't kill you." She slowly shook her head back and forth. "I'm sorry, Kendall. Really."

"So…how do you think she's going to react?" Kendall asked, rubbing his hands together. He then brushed them up over his face. "Hockey pucks. I think I'm more nervous about that than when I proposed to her. I don't want to hurt her."

"Honestly, I think she's more worried about hurting you," Rhuben replied with a click of her tongue.

"Really?" Kendall asked quietly. He looked so small as if he had suddenly turned back into a little boy, hesitant to step out into the real world.

"Fair dinkum," Rhuben replied, twisting her mouth to the side. "It's the same reason why I was hesitant about starting anything with Dak…or any guy really. And with her bipolar and everything…" She trailed off, looking around her apartment before settling her blue eyes back on him. "Riley's my twin and I like to think that I know her as well as, and even better than you, but there are times where I really don't know how she thinks or how she'll react to something. You two though…you always found a way to relate to each other." She slowly shook her head back and forth, giving a small smile. "She really loves you, Kendall. She wouldn't be able to forgive herself if she did anything."

"Me either, Benny," Kendall replied, suddenly looking like he was going to cry. From happiness or sadness, she wasn't sure.

"It'll all come good," Rhuben replied with a chuckle. "It took me a while to believe it, but it will."

Kendall smiled.

"Was there anything else?" Rhuben asked.

"Yeah...instead of writing my vows, I wanted to sing them," Kendall replied. "I wanted to sing "You're Not Alone", actually and I was hoping…"

"You want me to choreograph for you?" Rhuben asked with a half smile. Kendall nodded. "I knew it. Of course I will."

"Oh, and what do you think of this?" Kendall asked, reaching into his pocket. He pulled out a small box and flipped it around in his hand before lifting the lid, revealing a silver band with alternating diamond and ruby stones around the rim. "I picked it up from the jewelers before we left for Minnesota."

"Well, it's not my color," Rhuben replied, causing Kendall to laugh, "but I think Riles would like it."

"I'm hoping," Kendall said as he snapped the box shut. He gave her a curious look. "Were you nervous before you married Dak?" Rhuben let out a single "Ha."

"Even more nervous than any of the biggest shows I've ever performed," Rhuben replied. She let out a happy sigh. "I was shaking; wondering if we were doing things too quickly, if I was really ready for this, and worried about if I had really learned everything I could about myself before making that commitment. I wouldn't change anything." She blinked. "Are you getting nervous? Riley?"

"It was just a…weird conversation for a bit, today," Kendall replied. He pressed his lips together for a moment. "I was just wondering. That's all."

"Whatever you say," Rhuben replied, waving her hand in the air.


	3. Chapter 3

As Riley stepped up onto the porch, the sound of nails clicking on a hardwood floor sped towards the door, accompanied by a mixture of high pitched barks, yelps, and squeals of excitement. Not that she compared her brothers' excitement to the type of feelings dogs could show but she knew it was only a matter of seconds before she heard—

"_She's here_! _She's here_!"

He heard slow footsteps making their way towards the front door. The door opened and the calvary was released, bounding out the door. Riley pushed her weight into the ground so as to not fall over when the family dogs twisted and turned around her legs, squatted, and then jumped up to greet her, slamming their front paws into her stomach and chest. Her small, fluffy white dog, Spencer spun in tight circles, yapping excitedly, tail whipping from side to she was worried he'd propel himself right off the porch.

"Hey, Riles." Sydney Jackson-McGuire gave a half-smile—a far off cry from his trademark full blown dimpled smile—as he stepped out onto the porch, leaning over the dogs to give her a hug. He then took a step back and reached up to adjust the backwards hat on his head.

"I'm surprised at you, Little Man," Riley said, lifting a hand to push Sydney's forehead backwards.

"Why's that, sis?" he asked, lowering his eyebrows into an amused look. He angled his head backwards, peering down at her before crossing his arms over his chest his biceps bulging, straining against the seam of his t-shirt sleeves.

"Normally you'd cannon ball yourself at the door, trying to be the first one to give me a hug," she replied, tilting her head back as well.

Sydney twisted his lips to the side, the dimple in his right cheek deepening, his left hidden by the folds of his cheek before his face relaxed and his lips parted revealing two rows of straight white teeth. He was the perfect baby brother; equal parts good looks, smarts, and genes the he could and did use to his advantage. He was one of the only few members of the family that didn't need braces, much to his siblings' annoyance.

"I'm almost fifteen," he replied, giving her an odd look. "I'm too old to do that." Riley's eyes slowly narrowed before she sniffed, her lips pulling back into a smile. As he grew older, and his voice grew deeper, she could see that he was turning more and more into their oldest brother, Julius both in looks and in stature. The only differences being Julius's hair didn't have blue streaks in it, and he didn't have dimples.

"Kendall should be here soon, he had an errand to run," she replied and watched in amusement as a light flickered in his eyes. "I guess it's a good thing we're getting married, then."

"You never heard me complain," Sydney replied with a shrug, stepping to the side to give Riley room to enter the house. "Just want to see you happy. You know that."

Riley looped an arm around his waist and leaned into his side as they made their way into the house. Sydney kicked the door shut behind him after making sure all the dogs were inside the house. With a loud yap, they raced off towards the back of the house. "When'd you get so tall? I used to be able to pick you up."

"You still do, just in a different way now," Sydney replied, lifting his arm and placing it on the top of Riley's head. "Dang, you're short."

"And you're a jerk," Riley said, pushing him away from her. "Has Julius and Britt come in, yet?" Riley reached up to pull Sydney's hat off his head, using her other hand to muss his hair.

Sydney gave a peaceful smile as he snatched the hat back from her, sliding it over his hair. She made a mental note to remind him not to spend too much time with Patrick…whenever he took the time to get off of his computer where he spent a lot of time talking and working with professors back in Australia.

"Yeah, are they up yet?" Patrick asked, making his presence known as he came out of the living room. He rolled an apple up his arm, popping it into the air with his bicep before catching it. He was shirtless and barefooted, a pair of swim trunks hanging off his hips. He gave Riley a one armed hug, bringing an apple to his mouth, taking a large bite out of it. He then gently bumped her shoulder with the heel of his palm. "I need to have a chin wag with you later."

"Does it involve you putting on a shirt?" Riley asked, hiking an eyebrow as she looked her brother up and down. Patrick rolled his eyes, letting out a puff of air through his nose as he chewed, bringing the apple back to his mouth. "Hey!" She grasped his wrist and, despite him showing his strength by holding his wrist still, turned his arm to look at the black, block initials, "K.K." on his wrist. "When'd you get this?"

"That's what I want to talk to you about," before making his way into the kitchen, his bare feet slapping on the floor, passing their father, Ronan McGuire, who was sitting at the head of the kitchen table.

"Not even five minutes home and you've controlled him more than I have," Ronan commented, lifting his eyebrows. "Is it too early to object to your marriage and ask you to move back home?"

"Aren't you the one that wants us all out?" Riley asked with a smirk as she moved to give Ronan a kiss on the cheek before dropping down into the seat next to him. "Hey, dad."

"He's already getting on our case about it," Patrick replied as he used his toes to curl around a handle to a drawer in the kitchen. He pulled his leg back and opened the door before bending to reach inside, pulling out a t-shirt, sliding it over his head.

"Did you leave your surfboard out in the middle of the garage again?" Ronan asked, without bothering to turn around to face his son. Riley looked over at her brother as he tugged on the bottom of his shirt, slowly shaking his head from side to side in her direction.

"No, I put it up this time," he said to the back of his dad's head, throwing a wink in Riley's direction. She rolled her eyes knowing in the next few minutes she'd be out in the garage picking up his pile of surf gear from the middle of the garage and put them in their proper places. Like usual. Despite how much older they got, some things never changed.

"Did he?" Ronan asked.

"Yeah," Riley chirped. Ronan's eyebrows twitched and he gave her a pointed look. She knew he didn't believe her but he didn't show it through any giveaway with his body language or with any other facial movement or tick.

"No," Sydney contradicted her. He stuck his tongue out at Patrick who made a face behind Ronan's back.

"Yeah, I want you all gone; all but Sydney," Ronan said, changing the subject to answer her other question. Sydney gave a bright, toothy smile, folding his hands on the kitchen table. "God knows it'll be much more relaxing and quiet around here." He reached up a hand and scratched the side of his nose with his thumb. "Julius and Brittany might not be up until later, they got in late last night."

"If its one thing you have to remember about us, Jacksons, is that no matter where we are we're going to get up early." Riley angled her head back over the back of her chair to watch as her oldest brother, Julius, stepped into the kitchen, rubbing at his bleary eyes with his hand before tousling his messy hair. "Up when the best waves start to break; besides its 7am back in Oz, anyway. Right, Squirt?" He reached out his arm and pulled Patrick into a headlock, giving him a noogie.

"Beauty waves today and you slept right through 'em," Patrick replied, shoving his brother away. "You too, Riles. You woulda loved em; perfect waves before the next competition." He stretched his arms over his head, the muscles in his arm muscles stretching and pulling, sliding underneath his skin as he did so. He had gotten a little more board in the shoulders, his arms stacked with more muscle definition.

"So Britt's awake? I wanna say 'hi', see how she's doing," Sydney asked with a smile, setting all four legs of his chair on the floor. He got to his feet and went to rush out of the kitchen, but Julius grabbed him around the waist, lifting him up into the air and over his shoulder. "Waaah!"

"You're chuffed and bursting at the seam to see my wife but you won't say 'hi' to your own brother first?" Julius asked keeping a tight hold on his brother as he flailed, trying to get out of his grip, laughing as Julius dug his fingers into sides, tickling him.

"You know, I can take you, Old Man," Sydney said, struggling to climb down from his brother's shoulders. He shook when Julius let out a loud belly laugh and pressed his lips together. He lifted his elbow and pushed it into Julius's shoulder, propping his chin up with his hand, sniffing with annoyance.

"I'm 25, not old," he replied. He then snorted, rolling his eyes. "And you wish. I'm still the reigning wrestling champion in this house." Sydney lifted his head and looked over at Patrick, hiking an eyebrow, who narrowed his eyes just slightly. He took a slow bite of his apple before setting it down on the kitchen table.

Riley turned to look at Ronan as he let out a sigh. "Don't hit your head on the floor, and no shots under the belt" he said a second before Patrick went careening into Julius's side, knocking his two brothers to the floor where they proceeded to start to wrestle.

"And you all wonder why the fans, what do they call it, 'shipping'?" Ronan asked, closing his eyes as he thought. "Yeah, shipping. You wonder why PaNoah and RiPat is a thing. Might as well leave you lot here and I go get my own apartment again. God knows you all are never going to leave and always drive me bonkers."

"Think of it this way," Riley replied with an over the top smile, "your mind will still be sharp as a tack the older you get." She gave a thumbs up and Ronan let out a short laugh.

"Here's hoping," Ronan replied with a short laugh, lifting his coffee mug in a salute before taking a long sip. He then settled his eyes on her. "So, what's bothering you?"

"Kendall and I just got into a bit of a fight, that's all," Riley replied with a shrug of her shoulders.

"A fight-fight or a Kendall and Riley fight?" Ronan asked, his eyebrows knitting together just slightly. Riley let out a bit of a laugh.

It's true, she and Kendall rarely ever fought, but when they did it could get pretty bad. They were both stubborn and held onto their own ideas and beliefs with a tight fist. Their other fights could be described more like…frustrations; holding back thought and feelings from each other before being forced to confront whatever was going on. They phrase "opposites attract" didn't really apply to them; they were more similar than they were different. It was why and how they could find comfort with each other, they understood each other.

Riley was silent for a moment before she tapped her fingernails on the counter. "Do you ever see yourself getting married?" she asked him.

"Nope," Ronan replied and Riley blinked in surprise. "But, life may have other plans for me."

"Not even to Mama Knight?" Riley asked. Ronan slowly took a breath of air through his nose.

"At this point in time, no," Ronan slowly replied. "And it's not because of how you and her son are getting married or how Patrick and Katie are together, or any of that."

"Of course not," Riley agreed before giving him an amused smile, "it's because we'd chase away any girl you could be interested in because she doesn't compare to Mama K." Ronan let out a short laugh.

"Exactly," he agreed. "I just think some people are the kind to get married and some aren't." He looked towards the floor where Patrick and Sydney were lying on Julius's back, trying to pin his arms and legs down. "Marriage is about working together to make each person in the relationship the best they can be. Britt has really helped Julius out over the years; it'd be surprising if they didn't get married."

"I liked him before I learned about all of that, you know," Brittany said with a smile as she stepped around the boys on the floor, pushing her fingers back behind her ears. "I smell coffee." Ronan looked down at the mug in his hands before looking back up at her. "No, no, in a good way. I could use some; decaf."

"Allow me," Ronan replied, pushing his seat back with the backs of his knees, motioning for her to sit down in his now vacated spot.

"So, you're having pre-wedding jitters?" Brittany asked, lowering herself into his seat, reaching to pull down the bottom of her shirt, settling it against the slight bulge before folding her hands over it, the skin easily molding to the cup of her palms. "Or rather pre-planning jitters?" Riley paused, peering over at her sister-in-law. "The baby's fine. Its ears aren't developed enough for air pressure to affect it. Although sitting on a flight that long was bloody…" She trailed off, letting out a sigh. "Those things need bigger bathrooms."

"I can imagine that's something I'll be looking forward to in a few years," Riley asked, deadpan and Brittany let out a tinkling laugh.

"So, what's going on?" Brittany asked brushing her hair back from her face. She reached out her hand, gently grasping Riley's wrist, giving it a small squeeze. "I know all about marriage, you can ask me anything." Riley opened her mouth to reply and Brittany quickly put a hand in the air. "Also remember that you're going to have to talk to Kendall about this at some point."

"I know," Riley replied, her nostrils flaring, twisting her mouth to the side.

"You two have always been able to talk about anything," Ronan added. Brittany gave Ronan a smile of thanks as he set a steaming cup of coffee down in front of her. "That's a rare thing, but something that always made you two stand out."

"Yeah, I mean, Julius and I were friends for a long time and even it took him a while to fully open up to me about what it was that was going on with him and you guys," Brittany explain, removing her hand from Riley's, laying it back on her stomach. "It used to bother me because I never thought I could be with someone that didn't trust me enough to share his secrets. But, he eventually did." Her gaze shifted towards the floor. "Except for the part that he hasn't grown up, but I'm not really complaining about that. Julius and I may look like the perfect couple, but we argue more than you may think. "

"Really?" Riley asked, blinking in surprise. She looked over at Ronan who looked surprised as well.

"With his short memory, it kind of goes hand in hand," Brittany replied, bobbing her head back and forth. "But, we do our best to talk through things. You and Kendall have never had that problem."

"I got it," Noah announced as he made his way up from the basement stairs. "Couldn't sleep through all this racket."

"Did you take my room?" Riley asked, turning in her seat to watch Noah. "And you really slept in this late?"

"He was doing double at the studio last night," Ronan explained. "He has a school project coming up and unlike one of my kids; he actually likes to take his time with his school work instead of putting it off." Riley scratched the side of her jaw, looking around the room, feigning innocence much to her father's amusement.

"Well, that, and Pat gets up early for surfing," Noah explained with a shrug of his shoulders, stepping over his wrestling brothers to get to the front door. "And when it's not that, he stays up late working out. He was driving me mad." He disappeared for a short moment before returning with Kendall and Rhuben following behind him.

"Hey, Kendall," Patrick greeted from the floor, barely managing to lift a hand to give his friend a wave.

"Uh…hi?" Kendall said, lifting his hand in response to the boy on the floor. He blinked his green eyes, shifting his eyebrows upwards. "You think I'd get used to this by now."

"Pin!" Julius announced, pressing his weight onto Patrick's back, keeping him on the floor, "and pin!" Sydney let out a noise of frustration, slapping his hand onto the floor from where he was pinned by Julius's legs before patting his legs. "I win again."

"Yeah, yeah," Sydney mumbled in reply before reaching his hand out towards Kendall, allowing his friend to pull him to his feet before he embraced him in a quick hug. "Hey, Kendall."

"I swear you get taller every time I see you," Kendall said with a smile as he took a step back from the younger boy, taking the time to look him over. "Did you grow, what, four inches since I last saw you?"

Sydney's face scrunched up as he gave Kendall an odd look. "You know that's impossible, mate?" he asked. "You only grow about an inch or two a year. Maybe a _tiny_ bit more if you go through a growth spurt—"

"It's a compliment, Little Man, just take it," Julius said, clapping his baby brother on the shoulder after jumping to his feet.

"Syd wouldn't know how to take a compliment if his life depended on it," Riley said, deadpan. She noticed the jump in conversation topic and took it.

She let out a small sigh of relief through her nose. They were right; she had to talk to Kendall about it. Funnily enough, the closer it got to their wedding day, the harder she found it to be to do just that. Her dad was right, they could talk about anything. She's told him things that hurt and he learned how to accept and understand her feelings and they could move on from it, but this…she wasn't too sure.

"Hey, sis."

"Hey," Rhuben replied, quickly doling out hugs before joining them at the table. "Dad, I'm expecting a call from a potential client. Can I use your office when they call?"

"Sure thing," Ronan replied as she moved to join them at the table. "Waiting to hear if your songs got picked up?"

"And Dak's out looking to see if this new band wants to sign with his label," Rhuben agreed with a nod of her head. Riley took the time to look her sister over.

"How's it going so far?" Kendall asked, placing a hand on Riley's shoulder as he slid into the seat next to her. Riley lifted her fingers to her ring and started twisting it back and forth on her finger.

"Not great, but it's a new label, so…" Rhuben replied with a shrug of her shoulders. She twisted her mouth to the side for a moment. "New bands are always looking for labels to be a part of; it's the music I'm worried about. I don't think I've been much help lately. I'm hoping this one works out."

"It took me a while before anyone wanted to give my music a chance," Ronan said to her. "Just keep going."

"Dad, were you upset that Pat, Syd, and I decided not to work for you or at Blazing Phoenix?" Riley asked, turning towards Ronan, slumping in her seat just slightly.

While Rhuben had made the decision to become a music producer like Ronan, taking time out of her day to learn the ins and outs of his job, Noah worked at the studios as a writer and a studio player whenever needed all the while continuing school. Patrick decided to start participating in surf competitions and take college courses online and Sydney worked with the professors all the way in Australia. She had started designing tattoos and painting commissions on all sorts of canvases; more specifically designs for guitars.

Their band, now named Blazing Phoenix, was still continuing as it was their first passion. Their other jobs were side projects, but their music came first. They did, however, still stick to the rule that if one of them wanted to leave the band, then they'd all leave. She didn't see that happening any time soon.

"I'll admit, I thought it would be something you all would want to do," Ronan replied, shifting in his seat to turn and look at her. "But, I'm proud of what all of you are doing whether it's working with me or not."

"Ugh, this is boring talk," Patrick groaned, and Riley turned in her seat to see him crossing his arms over his chest, his nose wrinkling. "When did you two become such…_adults?_"

"Maybe you should try it, Weasel," Rhuben smoothly replied. Patrick just shrugged his shoulders before clapping his hands together.

"Now that you're here, we can finish our pool tournament," he said, changing the subject as he rubbed his hands together before swinging out his hands, slapping Noah and Sydney in the chest. Sydney made a face, curling his fingers into a fist to rub the area. "Oldies vs youngies, who will win the title?"

"Who're you calling old?" Riley asked, hearing her voice mixed in with Julius and Rhuben's. Patrick gave an exaggerated shrug of his shoulders and Noah rolled his eyes, shoving him towards the basement stairs that Sydney had already headed towards, proceeding to jump down the stairs.

"If I don't go they'll probably use my memory against me and convince me they already won," Julius commented, leaning over to kiss Brittany on the cheek.

"Just don't get into a sword fight again, love, I don't think Patrick can take another crack to the head," she said, squeezing his hand as he got to his feet. "Just bruise his ego, that'll really sink in." Rhuben laughed as she got to her feet as well.

"D'you mind?" Riley asked, turning towards Kendall.

"Get between you and a competition?" Kendall asked, his eyebrows shooting upwards. She saw a flicker of amusement glisten in his eye. "No way. Go on, I need to call mom and Katie, anyway."

Riley gave him a smile of thanks before following her siblings down into the basement.

Julius and Brittany _did _look like the perfect couple, hell to Riley they _were_. She wanted a marriage like that, something different than what she had seen. If her parents' marriage was anything to go by, hers was going to go up in smoke. She didn't want to fan the flames and she sure as hell didn't want to be the cause for it…again.

Looking at her sister, Rhuben had the light in her eye that had been there since she had started becoming serious with Dak. It was pretty dim at first, growing brighter and brighter, but now it seemed to be a permanent fixture with her.

She hoped to have that same feeling, and she knew what it felt like. She was just afraid that the light would eventually be snuffed or even worse was already on its way out. But, the truth was there, bubbling under the surface. She was in love with Kendall and knew she always would be, but worried she would never love him as much as he loved her.

* * *

**A/N: **Blaaaahh, I don't like this chapter that much. I kind of feel like it's just there/a bit of an info dump, but I'm excited to get through the rest of the story_._ At the same time it brings in Riley's plot point of the story. This is the first time I'm trying to have humor be a main part of the story and I'm still struggling with that a bit. I've always thought I was good at humorous moments, but not as an overall thing, so I'm still working out how to get that work.


	4. Chapter 4

"I thought we were meeting everybody at City Walk," Dak Zevon said as he lowered himself onto the park bench at Griffith Park. He lifted his hips and grasped the belt loops of his jeans to pull his pants up to his waist. He turned to face Kendall's side who was staring out across the grass.

"Boardwalk Fries are calling my name," Carlos Garcia added with a moan as he clasped his hands over his stomach. He loudly licked his lips. "Mmm, I can already taste the Old Bay seasoning."

"You know that stuff is bad for you," Kendall said, his nose wrinkling as he made a face.

"I'm sorry we all can't be as organically boring as you and Riles," Carlos replied with an exaggerated roll of his eyes. Dak let out a single bark of laughter as Kendall braced his arm and rammed his shoulder into Carlos's.

"It's better for you, you know," Kendall said as he straightened in his seat. "Keeps me healthy and fit."

"Ah, so hockey has been helping you out. Not much of a push over anymore." Carlos smiled as he rubbed at his shoulder. "Surprised if anyone could knock you over, Butch, you're built like a brick wall."

Dak chuckled as he watched the pair of old friends rib each other. He could say he was not only professional friends with the ex-members of Big Time Rush, but it was a bit harder to say he was personal friends with them. He had gotten closer to not only Kendall and Carlos, but James Diamond, and Logan Mitchell as well over the years as he not only helped them with their band and career from time to time but as he dated Rhuben as well.

Still, even now, most times he felt like he was on the outside looking in on their great friendship. He was older than everybody in their large group of friends and had gone through so much success early on in his life he was surprised his arrogant teenage attitude didn't drive them away for good. Well, not all too surprised. He could tell even after first meeting James, Carlos, Logan, and Kendall that they wouldn't let fame get to their head. In James's case, not too much, anyway.

"So, what's up?" Dak asked, squinting his eyes just slightly as the California breeze blowing through the trees allowed streaks of yellow light to shine on them.

"We're still meeting everyone else," Kendall explained, picking at the loose thread at the hem of his t-shirt before reaching up to adjust the hat perched on his head. "You two are the only ones who are married so I thought I'd ask you this question. Ask for your opinion on this, I guess."

"Is everything ok, dude?" Carlos asked. Dak glanced over Kendall's head over at Carlos who locked eyes with him before giving a shrug of his shoulders.

"Yeah, it's just…" Kendall trailed off. "I just wanted your views on something and while mom and I can talk about a lot, I kind of don't want to ask her about this." He paused briefly, a thoughtful look crossing his face before he shook his head. "Julius probably wouldn't be too comfortable with it either, now that I think about it."

"It's normal to have second thoughts about getting married you know," Dak said to Kendall.

"That's not it," Kendall replied. He tilted his head back, the base of his skull bumping against the back of the bench. "Uh…Carlos, you and Steph have been married for a little over two years, and Dak, you and Rhubes are coming upon a year."

"Yeahhh." Dak slowly nodded his head, giving Carlos a confused look. "You're kind of creeping me out, Kendall."

"Yeah, you haven't acted this weird since you were trying to decide whether or not you wanted Jo to go to New Zealand," Carlos added. His facial features then twisted together as he winced. "Ooh. Probably shouldn't have brought up your ex when talking about your fiancée."

"How long did you guys wait after you were married to, you know, consummate your marriage?" Kendall asked, ignoring Carlos.

Carlos let out a loud laugh. "Dude, I'm the worst person to be asking that in regards to your fiancée," he said, poking his friend in the shoulders. He then glanced upwards for a moment as he thought. "About…two hours."

"Two hours!?" Kendall and Dak practically shouted in unison, leaning over in their seats to look at their friend. Carlos hiked an eyebrow.

"You two were at my wedding, right?" he asked with a snort. Dak and Kendall nodded their heads. "And you were at the reception?" Again, they nodded. Carlos slowly started to grin. "Did you see Steph and me during our whole reception?" Dak opened and closed his mouth before settling into silence.

Carlos and Stephanie King were the first of their group to get engaged, let alone to get married. He had proposed to her practically the minute he turned 19 years old. They had been together basically since they had met and stayed together without too many big problems. They were without a doubt Palm Woods' high school sweethearts. Their wedding reception wasn't a formal sit down, as it didn't match their personalities, but more of a party; one of Carlos's "Hollywood Party King of Hollywood" parties.

"Now that you mention it," Kendall said, stroking his chin, his fingers making a scraping sound as they slid over the stubble, "I remember you making a bee line for the bacon wrapped chicken, but then after that…"

"Exactly," Carlos finished as a look of amusement appeared on his face. Then a serious look crossed his face. "Like I said, though, Steph isn't like Riles." He then looked over at Dak. "Or Rhubes for that matter. She hasn't gone through what they have." He then gave Kendall a teasing smile. "But, Riles as always been a firecracker, so maybe in this case, you'll want to do more than cuddle."

"Alright, alright," Kendall said, annoyance tingeing his tone just slightly. It was a bit of a joke in their group of friends that Kendall was more the type to cuddle when Riley was open to making-out. Dak quickly turned a short laugh into a cough.

He couldn't blame the guy for being a romantic. It was just who Kendall was. Dak knew it was also partially due to him wanting to keep Riley as comfortable in their relationship as he could. On the other hand, Carlos was right; Riley was a firecracker. She would be sure to let Kendall know, in the loudest and unfortunately in some cases meanest of terms, if what he was doing made her feel like he was being too protective and not allowing her to decide for herself what she would be comfortable with.

Rhuben on the other hand just stayed silent. Dak could tell if something was bothering her, but had quickly learned it was best to ask what was wrong only a couple of times before backing off and waiting for her to come to him to explain. That was how he had found her after a day of financial meetings to start up his record company, waiting for him to come to their apartment to talk a week after their wedding.

She looked so small, sitting in the center of their bed. Neither of them said anything apart from a quick greeting. Dak removed his glasses from his face to wipe the lenses clean with the hem of his shirt. He needed to keep himself busy, try to ignore the feeling of worry that climbed up his spine, each edge of his vertebrae a stepping stone.

Finally, the tension in the room burst, giving room for her to start explaining. He stood quietly, listening to every word. She kept her head, her gaze, downwards, rocking back and forth just slightly. He was still silent when she was done.

"Well?" Rhuben sat with her knees drawn up to her chest, arms wrapped around her legs. Her chin rest on the tops of her knees as she looked up at him through her dark hair. "Say something."

"I'm not mad if that's what you're worried about, lovely," Dak replied, resting the curve of his back against the edge of the dresser. He crossed one leg over the other before crossing his arms over his chest. He let out a sigh through his nose as he silently regarded her. "I'm disappointed." Rhuben winced, briefly closing an eye before shifting her gaze to the bedspread. Her toes let out a soft crack as she curled them, pressing the tips into the mattress. "Not with you, with me."

"What do you mean?" Rhuben asked.

"Look," Dak said as he climbed up onto the bed. He folded his legs beneath him before resting his arms on her knees, leaning forward to look her in the eye. "I've always said that this wasn't about sex and I mean it. I mean, yeah, it goes with marriage and everything but…" He trailed off, shrugging his shoulders. "I'm disappointed that I might've done something to make you not trust me with this. Where did I go wrong?"

"You didn't, Diz," Rhuben replied with a shake of her head. Dak grasped her hand and brought her knuckles to his lips in a quick kiss before running the pad of his thumb over her ring. It slid from side to side just slightly, never having been taken to the jeweler to get it sized perfectly since from Australia. "It's me."

Dak pressed his lips together for a moment. "You're…you're not regretting…getting married a-are you?" he asked quietly.

"No," Rhuben replied, lifting her hands to place them on his forearms. "No, of course not." Bumps instantly raised on his skin at her touch as she dragged her fingers up and down his arms. She lifted her head just slightly and Dak leaned forward and kissed her, cupping her cheeks with his hands.

He tried to pass his reassurance on to her, through his lips, through his touch. He wanted to show that he'd be there for her and he always would be, and that he was sorry for whatever it was that he might've done. He pressed his forehead against hers as soon as he pulled away, letting out a sigh through his nose.

"I love you, Dak," Rhuben said. "You didn't do anything wrong. Really."

"I must've done something." Dak shook his head back and forth. "I want to help. If that means I have to sleep on the couch or in the guest room for a while, I will. Without hesitation. I mean, it'll be pretty lonely, but…"

"We've shared a bed before and have…had sex before," Rhuben explained, clearing her throat, bowing her head just slightly in embarrassment. Dak felt his lips curl up into a smile just slightly. He always thought she looked cute when she was embarrassed, trying to hide her face, hide the flush the tinged her cheeks pink that made her eyes look a bit purple and soft. Softer and more alight then he'd ever seen. "It's different now."

"Like being married isn't different?" Dak asked with a teasing smile, his eyebrows shooting up. Rhuben shoved his shoulders, shifting his weight backwards just slightly. Dak laughed, reaching up to grasp her hands.

"You know what I mean," she said with a little laugh. She twisted her mouth to the side just slightly. She flicked her head to the side just slightly, tossing her side braid off her shoulder. "I just need a little time, that's all."

"I know," Dak replied with a nod of his head. "We'll just take things slow. Like we always have."

"And I do trust you by the way," Rhuben said, the familiar glint of amusement appearing in her eyes. "I just don't really trust myself to not act on my urge to kill you when you snore."

"It's ''Til Death Do Us Part', lovely," Dak pointed out to her, "not murder."

"Details," Rhuben replied, removing her hand from under Dak's grip to wave her hand in the air. Her lips parted to relax into a grin when she heard his name for her. "You're awesome, you know that?"

"I love you, too," Dak replied. "You want me to go sleep in the guest room? Or the couch is closer; you know, just in case you have a nightmare or something."

"Please," Rhuben said.

"Sure," Dak replied before back rolling off of the bed, landing on his feet. "It's probably for the best, anyway." Rhuben gave him a confused look. "I've seen what you look like waking up and it's not always pretty." He pulled his facial features into an ugly face before lifting his hands up to the side of his head, wiggling his fingers. "Your hair is all over the place like a witch and your breath is pretty kicking, too. And this way, I don't have to worry about you putting your freezing cold feet on my back."

"Shut. Up," Rhuben said, her look of shock quickly turning into amusement. She reached behind her for a pillow. She grasped it in her hands before throwing it at him. Dak laughed as he smacked the pillow downwards with his arms, holding it against his thighs.

"Hey, watch the glasses," he said in a mock warning tone, lifting his hand to pushing his glasses up his nose.

Rhuben stuck her tongue out at him. "Four eyes."

Dak blinked, looking over at Kendall when he felt a tap on his knee. Kendall and Carlos were staring at him and Dak realized that they were waiting on him to answer their unheard question. "Sorry, what?" he asked.

"How long did—"

"Oh, right," Dak said, interrupting Kendall. "Two weeks." He then put his hand up into the air when Carlos and Kendall exchanged glances. "We didn't go on a honeymoon because we're saving for the record company, and with the week we all spent in Australia there was no way we were going to get any privacy." He shrugged. "Then after we got back she just needed time."

"What's going on, Kendall?" Carlos asked. "You've never really second guessed yourself about this kind of stuff before."

"I just want to make sure everything's perfect," Kendall replied, running his hands over his face. "For her. I kind of feel like Riles has been pulling away, kind of?" He said it as more of a question than a statement.

"This is a big event in both of your lives, nerves and worries are bound to come up," Carlos said to his friend. "If she needs some space to figure things out, just give her space."

"The last time I did that she nearly had a mental breakdown because of her being bipolar," Kendall replied.

"But, that worked out for the two of you, remember?" Dak asked. "You were there for her when she needed you."

"Yeah, I guess," Kendall replied with a nod of his head.

"If you hadn't been there, she might've really hurt herself, Kendall," Carlos reminded him. He lifted his hand and ran his fingers through his short cut hair.

"Look, you both know as well as I do that the Jacksons will tell you something when they think you should know and I'm sure there will be things she'll probably never tell you," Dak said to the two of them. "But really how is that any different than anyone else?"

"Yeah. I mean, Kendall, I never told you that time I used your tooth brush to apply rash cream to Sparky before he ran away," Carlos said. His eyes then widened as a hand went flying up to cover his mouth. "Oops." Dak tried hard, but couldn't hold back his groan of disgust. Kendall's eyes widened into a look of horror before he pulled his hat off of his head and started to smack his friend with it. "Ow! Ow, I'm sorry."

"I kept telling mom that toothpaste tasted like lotion or sunscreen, but she wouldn't believe me," Kendall said as he jammed his hat down onto his head, getting to his feet. The brim scratched against the back of his neck. "We should get going."

"Come on, it wasn't that bad," Carlos protested, a grin popping back up on his face.

"You've tasted sunscreen?" Dak asked, his upper lip curling slightly as he got to his feet, adjusting the hem of his shirt.

Carlos merely shrugged. "Never seen me pass up on a dare, have you?" he asked with a smirk.

_Oy. _Dak rolled his eyes, shaking his head slightly from side to side. "Can I just make a suggestion, Kendall?" Dak asked him. Kendall nodded his head. "I haven't been married long and Rhuben and Riley aren't the same person so I don't know how well this will help, and you probably already know, but—"

"Honestly, Dak, I want to change the subject," Kendall said to him, putting a hand in the air. "No offense."

_I guess I should just be happy you wanted to talk to me in the first place_. Dak's lips twitched as he gave a nod of his head. "No problem," he reassured Kendall, putting a small smile to his face.

"But, I do have a question," Kendall said. He stopped walking and turned to face Dak, spinning the brim of his hat around to block the sun from his face. "Did you invite Robert to your wedding? 'Cause, I didn't see him there, and I'm wondering if I should invite my dad."

Dak bowed his head for a moment as his wife's ex-foster father was brought up. He and his past abuse wasn't too much of a tough subject for the Jacksons to talk about, but they all made sure to let them bring him up when in conversation with them. "Actually, we did," Dak replied. Carlos made a noise of surprise in the back of his throat. "He just didn't show up. He didn't give a reason, either."

"Why do you think he didn't go?" Carlos asked.

"I don't think he trusted himself," Dak replied, squinting over at Carlos. "That long of a flight with a plane full of people who have had his picture plastered on their TV screens at some point and with no way out. Wouldn't really blame him for trying to find a way through it to be honest with you. Plus, he would be travelling by himself for the first time and I'm sure the people back in Australia aren't too fond of him so…" He shifted his gaze back to Kendall. "It's up to you if you want to invite your dad."

"You two seem to be ok now," Carlos added, shifting his weight from foot to foot. "You respect each other and I'm sure he'd understand wither way. If you think the pros outweigh the cons, go right ahead. Either way, you know we've got your back." He held his fist out to Kendall and he bumped it with his own.

Kendall slowly nodded his head up and down, a far off look coming to his face. "Got it," he replied. "Thanks."

"Happy to help whenever I can," Dak replied with a shrug. "Just be there for her just like she has been for you. Remember that Riles went with you to Minnesota for a reason."

Kendall chuckled. "She kept calling it Siberia," he said, a fond smile coming to his face. He clapped Dak on the shoulder. "Thanks for listening."

"Sure," Dak replied with a nod of his head.

"How is your record company going, anyway?" Carlos asked. "You never said the other day if the meeting went well or…you know. Whatever."

Dak let out a sigh, his shoulders slumping slightly. "Not much luck," he replied, scratching the back of his head. "I'm really running a huge risk anyway, I mean, why would people want to go the route of an independent label when you have big names like Universal, or Capital, or Atlantic to go for?"

"Hmmm, you've got a point," Carlos pointed out and Kendall elbowed him in the side. "I mean…don't give up!" He proceeded to give an over the top smile and gave a double thumbs up. Kendall rolled his eyes.

"It's not me I'm worried about to be honest," Dak replied, sliding his hands into his jeans pockets. "Rhubes has been kind of hard on herself for not getting any demos sold. She's been putting a lot of pressure on herself for it. 5 Seconds of Summer is a band growing in popularity, from Sydney. We're trying to get a song done for them, see if they want it."

"They toured with One Direction, didn't they?" Carlos asked. When all eyes went to him, he shrugged. "Steph's a fan."

"Yeah, something like that," Dak agreed. "That's the biggest name so far. Don't know how well that will go right now. She just doesn't want to let me down."

"No offense, but this talk is making me depressed, and I need something to eat," Carlos said to his friends. "Let's get going."

"Seriously, sometimes I wonder how I put up with you for so long." Kendall shoved Carlos's shoulder with his hand. Carlos shoved him back all the while saying through his laughter, "Whatever you say, Logan." Dak shuffled behind the two of them, letting out a sigh through his nose.

Rhuben had always been worried about failing and he was sure she was afraid to fail him with this next business venture despite his reassurances. Riley was the same way; especially after gaining more control over her life and choices. Dak knew she hoped to have the love and marriage that her parents had and knew she was worried she'd be the reason for it not working out. But, on the other hand, he also knew that Kendall had never forgotten what his own dad did to his family. Maybe they were both worried for each other.

With that much pressure, he knew it would only be a matter of time before any one of them snapped. He hadn't seen the warning signs with Rhuben before, but hoped as a husband that he'd be there to fulfill her needs no matter how much she tried to push him away. And he could only hope the same for Kendall.

* * *

**A/N: **Sorry for the wait for this chapter. I had changed the plot to this story just a bit and was making sure everything I had originally planned didn't get messed up. Plus, I had a lack of motivation for a little while.


	5. Chapter 5

Riley watched as the rock she kicked bounced down the concrete sidewalk before she slid her hands into her jeans pockets. Lifting her hand to brush free strands of hair back from her face, she allowed herself to zero in on whatever it was that her siblings were talking about.

Anyone that knew her would know that her lack of attention to her brothers and sister was odd. She knew every little thing about her siblings' lives whether she had to figure it out for herself or she waited for them to eventually tell her. That was her role: to know everything that was going on with her family and to use that information to properly provide for them.

"All I'm saying, bud, is that you could've at least talked to her about it," Noah protested, lifting his hand in the air, ready to fend off an inevitable punch to his arm from his twin. "Or thought it through."

"Ha! When does he ever think through anything?" Rhuben asked with a loud laugh, lifting the cup in her hands to her mouth, taking a long sip from it. She licked her lips and let out a soft "ahhh" before planting her free hand down on her hip. "When do any of us?"

Riley quickened her pace and reached out her hand to grasp the cup in Rhuben's hand. Ignoring her sister's "hey!" of protest, she lifted it to her lips and took a long sip, her features colliding as the strong taste of coffee hit her taste buds. "Yugh!" She handed the beverage back to her sister. "Since when do you drink coffee?"

"Since she's been practically killing herself to get Dak's record label off the ground," Noah replied, a hint of a frown on his face. "Luckily we've been light on our own music until you got back otherwise she'd be running herself into the ground."

"You have no idea," Rhuben muttered under her breath.

"You don't have to be working all the time, we've done that before, with basic complete control over our music now, you can relax," Noah pointed out. Rhuben opened her mouth to respond, but Sydney quickly cut in.

"_Anyway!_" Sydney loudly cleared his throat, getting back to their previous topic. "Because, I'm not going to pass up my brotherly duties to insult him, I never even knew Patrick had the capacity to think in general," Sydney deadpanned, his lips curling upwards into a smirk.

"Ha, ha, ha," Patrick let out a high pitched mocking laugh, rolling his eyes.

Riley watched the exchanged, pulling her bottom lip into her mouth with her teeth. She pulled her leg back and struck a second rock, watching as it bounced, skipped, and jumped along the pavement before striking the back of Patrick's shoe.

He stopped walking and held his arm out to the side, looping it around Riley's as she sauntered past him. "Come on, ol' girl, I need your advice on this one," he said to her. Riley shot him an annoyed look, rolling her eyes.

"Are you calling me that because I'm older than you or 'cause I'm getting married?" she asked.

"Both," Patrick replied with a grin, his eyebrows twitching upwards into a look of amusement. "But, who needs a piece of paper to know that you're in a serious relationship?" He lifted his hand in the air. "It's just not for me."

"Nah, but a piece of piece of paper telling you to stay away from Katie will be arriving on our doorstep once Kendall sees that," Noah warned his brother, nodding his head in his direction.

Patrick merely waved his hand in the air before turning back to Riley. "So, what do you think?" He held his arm out towards her, turning his wrist upwards to show her the initials stamped on the inside of his wrist. Riley grasped his hand and moved his arm closer to her face.

"I think I could've done better lining than this," she commented with a click of her tongue before giving a half smile. "Then again, I always brag about my work, yeah? Seriously, though, I'm finding it a bit hard for blokes to make appointments with me right now. Even for touch ups on some of their tats."

"You didn't get any tat work done in Siberia?" Noah asked, doing a quick pirouette before he started walking backwards. He reached up his hand and grasped the small stud under his bottom lip, twisting it from side to side. He sniffed, his nose wrinkling once. "Although, considering how cold it is there, doesn't surprise me if all those blokes just want to stay inside."

Sydney let out a loud snort. "It's, basically, the 70 degrees there right now, don't be daft," he commented.

"Hey, you call it that, too," Rhuben said, reaching out her hand to push on the back of his head. Sydney frowned, slapping his hand away. Riley's eyes narrowed just slightly as she watched the exchange.

As Sydney grew older and moved into his teenage years, she could see that while he was growing into his own self and finding more of his own personality, he was showing more instances of being just like his siblings. He could be as serious as Julius; as angry as Riley; as compassionate as Rhuben; as exuberant as Patrick; as quiet as Noah; and even as laid back as Ronan. It was something she wasn't sure she should be proud of or worried about.

If Patrick was any indication he could mimic and be attached to her 1/7 of the time (splitting his attention evenly with his family, maybe a little more so to Brittany now that she was pregnant) and still turn out to be a well brought up young man.

But to be called daft by him hit a sore spot. She knew not to take it personally as he was always finding opportunities to show off his smarts, but this felt different. She looked over at Patrick, lifting her eyebrows into a questioning look and he lowered his head to talk into her ear. "Little Man's started tutoring some kids over at the orphanage and for some kids being home schooled and they've been bullying him. About being smart and famous and all that."

Riley let out a sigh through her nose, the corners of her lips pulling downwards. "Why didn't you tell me before?" she asked and Patrick gave the family's famous one-should shrug.

"He said he could handle it," he replied, his eyebrow twitching upwards to show his lack of belief in the statement. Riley could feel the muscles in her brother's arm as he curled his fingers into fists for a moment before slowly allowing the tension to leave his body. "Otherwise I'd light 'em all up." He indicated his new tattoo again. "Partially why I got this."

"Isn't it for Katie?" Riley asked, a curious look crossing her face.

"It also stands for keep calm," Patrick explained, lifting his free hand to scratch the side of his jaw. "It'd really come in handy, yeah?" He let out a soft laugh. "Get it?" Riley gave a simple nod of his head.

Patrick had always been into fitness having decided to spend more of his time around music work surfing in competitions and continuing his kickboxing training. He could have bad bursts of anger as they had learned a couple years back when Robert had wanted back in their lives, but unlike her whose anger exploded out of her, he worked damn hard at not releasing it.

"Yeah, I get it," she said. She peered up at him. "So, I take it, Katie didn't like it?" Patrick's smile of laughter instantly disappeared and she had her answer. "What'd you think was going to happen?"

"I don't know, she just…I didn't expect her to practically go nuclear on me," Patrick replied, throwing his free hand in the air. Riley let out a loud "ha!" rolling her eyes. "We haven't talked in a while."

"Yeah, well you won't be talking at all once Kendall finds out," Riley pointed out to him. "Or James. Kendall might not do anything but yell at you, but James might actually want to break a sweat and beat you down. We don't even have tattoos of each other's names."

"Yeah, well, we're not like you!" Patrick said, using his bottom teeth to brag his lip piercings into his mouth. He sucked on them for a moment before releasing them adding under his breath, "No matter how much she wants us to be."

"Dak and I don't either," Rhuben added before Riley could ask Patrick to explain further. She made a mental note to bring it up to him later on.

Sydney let out a mocking gasp before hiking an eyebrow in Rhuben's direction. "After all this time he's been pining after you, he hasn't gotten your name tattooed across his chest?" he asked, his words dripping with sarcasm. "Shocker."

"Oh, belt up," Rhuben replied, her upper lip curling just slightly. Sydney lifted his hand and gave her the finger behind her back. Without turning around she said, "I saw that!" her words mixing in with Riley's timbre of disapproval.

"Whatever," Sydney said with a small grin and Noah shoved his shoulder before putting him in a headlock.

_What's gotten into him? _Riley asked. She looked around at each of her siblings. Rhuben drinking coffee when she insists she hates the stuff? Sydney acting much unlike himself? Patrick doing something as drastic as getting a tattoo of his girlfriend's initials when he claimed he "wasn't the type" to do so. Noah was just as quiet as ever, but she was sure there had to be a change with him somewhere. Maybe just his talking more often…

And she was missing out on all of it. It was like her life as an engaged woman and her life with her family was pulling her in two different directions.

"Never said I didn't, just pointing it out," Sydney replied, his voice getting slightly higher pitched, turning his head away just slightly. "Red alert: a jet stream is coming through."

Riley bit back a groan as Jett Stetson crossed their path, heading out of a Bed Bath and Beyond. She couldn't see any bags in his hands, but she was sure he was shopping for items that would help him keep up his idea of a perfect face. She didn't have much against the hot TV actor, he could even be pretty funny, but his ego was so big she was surprised his head didn't get stuck between the buildings lining both sides of the street. Having recorded a song for the soundtrack of his shows, they've been on pretty friendly-professional terms.

"Well, well, well." A wide grin spread across Jett's face. "Isn't it the lovely McGuire Brood?" He clapped his hands together, rocking forward on his heels just slightly. "To what do I owe this pleasure?"

"Hey, Jett," the five siblings chorused.

"So I see your lovely face is back in town," Jett commented, making his way over to Riley, looping an arm around her shoulders. "You're not tied down yet are you?"

"Weddings not for a little while, Jett," Riley replied, lifting his arm off her shoulders. "Of course I'm sure you remember that." She glanced at her watch. "Thirty-five seconds and you haven't made a single comment about my dumping Kendal to give you a chance. Must say that I'm impressed."

"Your time's wasting, tick-tock, tick-tock," Jett said, wagging a finger in the air. He let out a peaceful sigh. "What _is it _with girls falling over Kendall Knight? It's becoming a problem really."

"Well, that's one less girl to worry about, isn't it?" Patrick asked with a half smile.

"One of the better ones," Jett said. He snapped his fingers in the air. "Between the two of you, I'm sure no one else can compare."

"Thanks, Jett," Rhuben said with a roll of her eyes and a small laugh. "You really know how to make a girl feel special." She made a humming sound in the back of her throat before looking over at him. "While you're here, have the producers of _The Boy Next Door _given anymore thought about that song?"

Jett paused for just a brief moment before he started rubbing his hands together. Riley could feel her sister's disappointment radiating off her body in waves seconds before her shoulders dropped just slightly. "Uh…yeah, they're going to pass on it," Jett said to her, his air of self-awareness disappearing. "I talked you up—"

"Must not've been too difficult for you," Noah said under his breath, scratching the side of his jaw.

"Believe me, it wasn't" Jett said, laying his hands over his heart, earning a collective chuckle from the brothers and sisters. "They are going to keep you in mind, though. This song just isn't what they need right now." He lifted the corners of his lips into a half smile. "Sorry."

"Far out," Sydney groaned, running a hand over his face, coming to a rest on top of his head. He gripped a handful, a muscle in his jaw twitching.

"I…" Jett blinked rapidly, looking over at him. "I can see where you'd be confused given how often you jump back and forth across the world, but that's not a good thing." Sydney opened his mouth before closing it. He snapped his fingers and pointed his finger at him, giving a short nod of his head.

"Cheers. At least you tried," Rhuben replied, placing a hand on his shoulder. "That's all I can ask for."

Patrick removed his arm from Riley's and crossed both of them over his chest. "Well, you could ask for someone to take your songs, but—_ow_!" Riley pressed down hard on his toes with her foot, twisting it just slightly from side to side for added measure. "I'm just sayin'."

"Right, well, seeing your _lovely _faces have really brightened my day," Jett said, looking from Rhuben and then over to Riley, a wide smile crossing his face. He reached his hands up and tugged slightly at the upturned collar of his polo shirt. "Nice chatting with you all, but I've got places to go and people to do things for me."

"Is there any other way?" Sydney asked with a short laugh, holding his hand out towards the TV star. Jett's eyebrows twitched upwards into a knowing look before she slapped Sydney's palm with his own, shaking his hand.

"You know there's not," Jett replied, reaching for his sunglasses tucked into the V of his shirt, lifting them up over his eyes. "Ciao." He lifted his hand in a short wave before making his way down the street.

"Glad to see some things haven't changed," Riley said with a small laugh, shaking her head from side to side.

"Meaning?" Sydney asked as they all started making their way down the street again.

"Did I do something to piss you off?" Riley asked, turning towards him. She then lifted a finger to in his face. "And I don't want a sarcastic answer, Little Man." He gave he a confused look. "You know me; normally I don't make a big deal about things like this, but when I got home the other day—"

"You _are _upset I was more excited to see Kendall than you," Sydney interrupted her. "I knew it." Sydney pressed his lips together for a moment and scratched the back of his head. "It was nothing personal and you know I was excited to see you." His dimples appeared in his cheeks as he smiled, reaching out a finger to prod her in the side. "Besides, even you know I like him better than you. You're just my sister."

"Ha, freakin', ha," Riley deadpanned. Sydney gave him a bright smile and Riley slowly started to smile as well.

Sydney the bowed his head for a brief moment, crossing his arms over his chest before looking back up at her. "It's been happening more often," he said to her. He lifted his hand and waved it around his head, his fingers pointing directly to his head. "The…mental thing. Angel's been giving me mental exercises to try and dad's been keeping track and everything, and sometimes I can keep it at bay; pretend it's not happening—because I was a pretty awesome little ankle biter I think we can all admit—"

"And modest, too," Noah said and Sydney stuck his tongue out at him.

"Sometimes I can't do it, that's all," Sydney admitted. She could only imagine how hard that was. None of them ever liked admitting that they could possibly fail at something. "I've just been kind of stressed out lately." He then brightened once more and Riley could see the little boy in him again. "But, now that you and Kendall are back things will be back to normal."

"Until the wedding rolls around, I reckon you're right," Riley said, looping an arm around Sydney's waist. "But, it wouldn't be normal if we don't get into some sort of trouble. So…what can we do to put some gray hairs on dad's head. You know he's bound to start dyeing it by now."

"Either that or show polish, eh?" Rhuben said, elbowing Noah in the side.

"You were the one who gave Syd the scissors, it was the only thing I could find to cover the bald spot on my head," Noah said, his hands instantly flying up to cover the top of his head. The muscles of his biceps straining under his t-shirt sleeves.

"And, sis, don't worry about the songs," Riley said, hurrying her speed, dragging Sydney with her to loop her arm through her twin's. "I wasn't supposed to say anything, but as Julius's favorite little sister." Rhuben rolled her eyes. "I'm reserving my right to annoy him by telling you that he's been secretly recording one of the songs you and Dak made so he could be considered a…gimmick artist I should say, under the label. So, _you_…" She unwrapped her arm from around Sydney and plucked the coffee from her sister's hand and handed it to Sydney who threw it away, "can go back to normal."

She let out a loud snort as she pulled Noah into her side who then lifted a hand to muss Patrick's hair before slinging his arm around his neck. "Like any of us are normal," she commented.

"I know that's right," Riley said with a laugh.

"Just remind me to thank Julius and figure out a plan to become favorite again."

Soon, they came upon The Grove, instantly spotting their friends. After the usual greetings—a bone crushing hug from Carlos, a flirty comment from James, a "God, you look wiped out" exchange between Logan, Riley looped her arm around Kendall's waist before sliding the tips of her hands into his front left pants pocket, slowing their pace behind the large group of friends as they headed off to their first activity together.

"Two months left and I'm considering the idea we elope," she said to him. Kendall let out a chuckle of amusement before leaning over to press his lips against hers in a soft kiss.

"As much as I would love to spend even more time together, just the two of us," he said to her, "what brought on this little idea? I thought you wanted a traditional wedding."

"I still want the gifts, don't worry about that for a tick," Riley said, returning his smile before leaning her head on his shoulder. Kendall lifted his hand and started to run his fingers through her hair.

"You realize mom would kill us if we went along with it," Kendall said, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. "Especially if she and Katie couldn't be there." He then frowned as he peered down at her with the green eyes that had captivated her long before she admitted to herself she even had feelings for him. "Is something wrong?"

"Just realizing how much I've missed at home," Riley replied, wrinkling her nose just slightly. She let out a sigh, burying her face into his chest for a moment. Kendall gently squeezed her arm, stopping her from walking. He reached his hands up to cup her cheeks in his hands, angling her head back just slightly.

"Look at me, Ruby," he said quietly. Riley slowly lifted her eyes to look up at him. "If you think we should hold off on our wedding, push it back a little, or whatever." She watched as he swallowed thickly, his Adam's apple bobbing.

"I don't want to break the engagement," Riley instantly said.

"I know you don't," Kendall replied. "I wasn't implying that you did. I can see it in your eyes. I can see that you love me and that you love being together with me." He paused for a moment, his eyes narrowing slightly. "But, I can also see that you hate being away from your family even though you know that's what marriage entails. We've been moved into our own apartment for a while now."

"We haven't even talked about where we're going to live after we get married," Riley reminded him. "Here, or Minnesota, or even back in Australia. You have your hockey and I know you love playing in that league."

"Riles, I'd give that up in a minute, you know that," Kendall said, moving to press his forehead against hers. "Hockey's just a sport and music is still important to me. Maybe I could work under Dak's label, too so we could stay here."

"That's just it, I don't want you to give it up," Riley said, shaking her head back and forth. A breath of air shot out through her nose. She could feel her jaw tightening. She slowly breathed in and out of her mouth, willing herself to not get mad. She didn't have anything to be mad at. Kendall had proved time and time again that he'd do anything for her.

Her moving to Minnesota with him for two months could be seen that she was the same way, but she had spent a lot of that time working and wanting to be home. She was happy for his continued success and desire to play the sport, she knew talent and heart when she saw it, it was evident in the conference room all those years ago when she first met Big Time Rush, despite it being more of James's dream at the time. He needed to have something of his own.

"I don't want you to give it up," Riley said to him after a moment of silence. "I don't want you to change anything for me." She sucked in a deep breath of air before letting it out. "I'm just getting more scared, ok?"

"Of me?" Kendall asked, his eyebrows knitting together. "Of us?"

"Both," Riley replied. Kendall slowly nodded his head. "In a good and bad way and you know I hate admitting that." Kendall nodded his head, a boyish yet pleased smile on his face. She put a hand over his face, pushing his head back. "Oh, stop."

"Sorry, keep going," Kendall said, taking her hand, kissing the inside of her wrist. "You're scared. Just as long as I can be there to help you. Like before. We're going through this together, and I'm terrified."

"Of?" Riley asked.

"Not being enough," Kendall replied. Riley felt her eyebrows knitting together into a look of confusion. "I've always been worried about that. I know I can talk you off the ledge if you're ever at that point, but sometimes I wonder if I'll always be able to do it." He cleared his throat. "I've always…I've always been worried that I can be the perfect guy for you for so long but then I'll do one thing to turn that around."

"Like your dad," Riley said, blinking in surprise as it suddenly hit her. Kendall gave a sudden half smile. Whether it was out of amusement or annoyance, as she knew her perceptiveness could get on his nerves, she wasn't sure. "We always had a lot in common, haven't we?"

"From what I remember, you never wanted to believe that," Kendall said.

"That's because I never wanted to believe that a friend of mine could be hurt just as much, or even more, than I was," Riley explained. "You know I hate seeing my friends hurt. You know that's why I want to be a doctor…whenever I decide to really focus on that."

"And I'll be there every step of the way," Kendall promised before his lips pulled back into a smirk. "I'll even be your test dummy when the time calls for it. Sponge baths included. Or sponge showers, either way I can't reach my back that well."

Riley tilted her head back in a laugh. "Not that kind of doctor, boofhead," she said to him. "Doctor/patient relationships aren't really allowed you know."

"Since when have you been one to follow all the rules?" Kendall asked, hiking a brow. "May I remind you, you're the reason sling shots are banned at the Palm Woods."

"Ah, one of my better moments," Riley said, curling her fingers to blow hot air on them before buffing her shirt. "That got you hot under the collar, eh?"

"Amongst other things," Kendall muttered, a teasing smile crossing his face before tossing a wink her way, successfully earning a blush from her as a reward. "So, we're both scared how these next two months and the wedding will go; how things are going to change. But, I've never felt safer than having you around, having you in my arms and knowing you're ok."

"I love how you can do that," Riley said to him as she allowed him to pull her into a hug. "How you can get me to stop wondering how to take back control of things and to just let go. How you can make me stop wanting to find a place to hide and wait for everything to blow over."

"Well," Kendall said slowly. Riley took a step back from him, peering up at him and he gave her another, longer kiss. "I wouldn't mind hiding out with you every once in a while." He gave her a peaceful smile that slowly turned into a smile of amusement as a mocking thoughtful look crossed his face. "In our bed…under the sheets..."

"Sure, we can go right ahead and build a fort if it'll tickle your fancy," Riley said with a smirk.

"I was actually thinking along the naked variety," Kendall said with a short laugh.

"Kendall," Riley said, planting her hands on her hands on her hips. "I haven't seen the girls in a while." Kendall just smirked as he grasped her hips, pulling her back to him, kissing her cheek before starting to kiss down her neck.

"Haven't seen you in a while, either," he muttered into her neck. As the tip of his tongue grazed over a spot on her neck, causing a muscle to twitch under the spot, and a shiver to roll down her spine. Riley's eyes fluttered shut for a moment before she pushed him away. Kendall stuck his bottom lip out in a pout ad Riley chuckled placing her hands on his shoulders, lifting up onto her tip toes to give him a quick peck on the lips.

"Just wait a few hours and I'll make it up to you," she said, grasping his hand between both of hers, pulling him after their friends. If he hadn't playfully tried planting his feet into the ground, she would've took off running like a kid in a candy store.

"Oh, really?" Kendall asked with a suggestive smile. "Well, I guess a few hours won't hurt. But, you're all mine."

"Boofhead. I already am."


End file.
